Council Tax - Disregards

When working out how many people live in a property, we do not count some people. These are called disregarded people.

Disregarded people are not liable for Council Tax. Where there are at least 2 people over the age of 18 that are not disregarded for Council Tax, full Council Tax is due and payable. If all but one person over the age of 18 are disregarded then 25% discount applies. If all the residents of the property are disregarded then 50% discount applies.

A person may be disregarded if they are:

Aged under 18

Aged 18 and someone is entitled to child benefit for you

A school or college leaver aged under 20 and you have left school or college after 30th April. You will be disregarded until 1 November of the same year whether or not you take up employment.

A prisoner, someone in detention awaiting deportation or detained under mental health legislation

Severely mentally impaired

A full-time student in higher or further education studying for more than 21 hours a week and more than 24 weeks a year. The course must last for at least one academic or calendar year at a prescribed educational establishment

Student Nurses - we disregard Project 2000 nurses and students of any course that leads to their first registration under the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1979.

A spouse, civil partner or a dependant of a student who is a non-British citizen and you are prevented by immigration from taking paid employment or from claiming benefit in the UK.

A foreign language assistant on the official British Council programme

A young person on a government training scheme or following some types of apprenticeship. An apprentice is someone who is taking a qualified course approved by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority earning no more than £195 per week.

A long-term hospital patient or care home resident

Living in a hostel which provides care or treatment because of your old age, physical or mental disability, past or present alcohol or drug dependence or past or present mental illness

Living in a bail or probation hostel

Staying in a hostel or night shelter because you are homeless

A member of a religious community

A member of visiting armed forces. Your dependants are also disregarded.

Careworkers/Carers must be providing support or care to another person at the same address and must meet one of the three criteria below:

Providing care on behalf of an official charitable body, employed for at least 24 hours per week and earning no more than £44.00 per week.

Introduced by a charitable body, employed for at least 24 hours per week, earning no more than £44.00 per week and living in the property to enable the best care to be provided.

Caring for someone who is in receipt of certain benefits i.e. Attendance Allowance, middle or high rate Disability Living Allowance, any rate of the Daily Living Component of PIP and an increased rate of Disablement Pension. The carer must be providing care for at least 35 hours per week and not be the partner of the person being cared for.

Apply for a Disregarded People Council Tax Discount

Please be advised; failure to notify us of a change in your circumstances within 21 days, or applying for a discount or exemption you are not entitled to, will result in a penalty of up to £280 being issued.

Requirements for Supporting Documents:

Preferred file formats for attachments sent to us via email or uploaded onto our website to support claims and applications are as follows:

Using the preferred file type ensures we can access your attachments. If we are not able to open the file it will lead to unnecessary delays in processing your request. Please also ensure the attachments are readable and in an upright position. Following this guidance will ensure we are able to process your claim or application more effectively.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Security Notice:

Basildon Council may send you a text message requesting further information to support your claim. The sender ID will always appear as BasildonCNL. You will never be asked to respond to the text with information. We advise that all information is sent over by email to counciltax@basildon.gov.uk or benefits@basildon.gov.uk where possible.